1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to image forming apparatuses such as a laser printer and an electronic copying machine, which form an image in accordance with image data sent from a host device.
2. Description of the Related Art
According to conventional image forming apparatuses, in altering an operation mode which is not built in the image forming apparatus, data such as emulation data and font data (hereinafter referred to as down-load data) is down-loaded to an image forming apparatus from a computer as a host device, an image scanner or the like, and data necessary for the apparatus to perform a predetermined operation is set to the individual units of the apparatus, thus executing initialization.
When the down-load data is set where necessary, the image forming apparatus becomes ready to form an image in accordance with image data sent from the host device.
According to such conventional image forming apparatuses, however, down-load data should be down-loaded from a host device every time power is turned on or an operation mode is changed. The down-loading occupies the host device every time and significantly impairs the effective use of the host device.
As one of a possible image forming apparatuses (not a power art), there may be an apparatus which employs an IC card (portable memory medium) having a program, fonts and other various data stored in an integrated circuit chip mounted therein and loads these data as desired into a RAM provided in the image forming apparatus to execute an operation. When the IC card is inserted in or removed from the apparatus which has already been activated to be ready for operation, noise may occur at the connector section of the apparatus which receives the IC card, thus destroying the memory contents in both the IC card and the image forming apparatus.
Further, conventional IC cards for use in the possible image forming apparatuses, even they are of different types, have the similar or the same external appearances, so that it becomes difficult to select the proper type, thus making the use of the IC cards inconvenient.